When the original LocoRoco was released for PSP a few years ago, it immediately gained critical acclaim among reviewers for being an intuitive and fun platformer. As a game, it probably defined what the PlayStation Portable represented to Sony. The second game in the series was as good as the first, but is this newest iteration just as praiseworthy?

This time around, you'll get sixteen levels in total, which is a far cry from the original game that boasted over forty—it doesn't help much that some of the levels are fairly short either. However, the difficulty of the entire game has been increased, meaning that gameplay is no longer just a matter of tilting the game screen and carelessly jumping. More than ever, you'll really have to be careful of when and where you jump. In addition to this, LocoRoco is now more of a platformer than its predecessors. Platformers usually require accuracy, which doesn't work particularly well with this game's controls, but it's not an impossible feat to get through all the levels.

If you've never played LocoRoco before, the controls are easy to remember. Simply hold the L or R buttons to tilt the game screen in the respective direction, causing your "LocoRoco" to roll downhill. Tapping the other shoulder button (while holding the other), will cause you to jump in the direction you were rolling in. The gameplay consists of collecting as many LocoRocos as possible and getting to the end of the level. While this was pretty much the extent of the controls for previous games, you'll have a few more gameplay elements to worry about in Midnight Carnival.

New to your arsenal of moves is the high bounce, which allows you to create chains of jumps to give you more points. It also allows you to climb walls and speed up your LocoRoco, and is the basis for much of the platforming in the game. The only problem with this bounce is that it is very difficult to control where your LocoRoco will land, which makes levels much more difficult that in the past—you will find yourself having to restart numerous times before finally completing a level. The increased difficulty may push away some players, but those of you who are fans of the series will still find some enjoyment in Midnight Carnival.

Multiplayer gameplay is also available, but as always it is local ad-hoc. While this works well, I would have liked to see a full online multiplayer mode (as I would like to see in all PSP games). The multiplayer allows you to play with up to 3 friends cooperatively, but you can also upload your scores for each level to an online ranking board through infrastructure mode.
For those returning to the series, you'll notice that the graphics are darker to match the Halloween theme of when the game was released. You'll also find the game a lot harder than expected and a little frustrating at first, but I'd implore you to stick with it. Although the level design is more challenging, this is still a great LocoRoco game.

I've got to say that I was looking forward to LocoRoco Midnight Carnival because I am a big fan of the series. The original was unique in its gameplay and music, which made it an instant purchase for me. This game is more of the same, only more difficult. If you can live with this, make sure you buy the game, especially if you have a PSPgo, as it's perfect to play on the go. You can even play it with the PSPgo screen down, making it just that little bit more portable, and there is more than enough gameplay available for the price ($15/£12).

7.5 Graphics Same LocoRoco graphics only darker, nothing overly impressive. 9.0 Sound As always, the music is eccentric yet amazing, although not as good as the original LocoRoco for some reason. 8.5 Gameplay More challenging than previous LocoRoco games. Platforming elements don't work as well as they should. 8.0 Replay Value While only containing 16 levels and basic multiplayer, you can track stats such as time, collected MuiMui, etc., meaning that the completionist can get a lot of gameplay out of Midnight Carnival. 8.2 Overall The perfect handheld game, although a little more difficult than previous games in the series. Well worth buying.